Apple Inc. (AAPL) is a multinational corporation that designs, develops, and markets consumer electronic products and accessories. Apple was founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs and his friends Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. Soon they were able to capture the market by starting their product line. Since the beginning, Apple has differentiated its products with innovation, sleek design, and marketing strategies.
Apple has a limited but top-notch product line. Every product is designed with great innovation. The Apple product line includes the Mac, iPad, iPhone, Watch, TV, and other accessories and services. Brand loyalty is the main factor in the success of the company.
The Mac product line, i.e., computers and laptops, includes the MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, iMac Pro, Mac Pro, and Mac Mini. Besides Mac, in the smartphone category, the Apple iPhone is a great success and has a handsome market share in the global market. Apple Watch is another great success story where it has already introduced the Apple Watch Series 4, Apple Watch Nike+, and Apple Watch Hermes.
Though Apple has a narrow product line, it still has strong competitors in the global market for its different product lines, especially for laptops and smartphones. In the following article, I will discuss the top Apple competitors.
Top Apple competitors
Samsung
Samsung, also known as Samsung Group, is a South Korean multinational conglomerate company with affiliate businesses under the brand name Samsung. Samsung Group has a huge product line, i.e., consumer electronics, semiconductors, telecommunication equipment, home appliances, automotive, and many more. Samsung was founded in 1938 by Lee Byung-Chill and is currently among the top 10 most valued companies in the world.
Samsung is one of Apple’s top competitors in the smartphone segment. Samsung is the leader in smartphone market share. Galaxy smartphones are considered the pioneers in the industry. Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy are strongly competing to increase market share. One way or another, it greatly affected the iPhone market share. Samsung is able to produce phones at affordable prices. In the laptop segment, Samsung has a decent market share but is not among the top Apple competitors in the laptop segment.
Dell
Dell is named after Michael Dell. It is an American multinational computer company that deals in the manufacturing, selling, and repairing of computers and related parts (products and services). Dell is a strong competitor of Apple in the laptops segment. This rivalry started many years ago when Dell introduced a competitive product, the Dell DJ, and became one of the early competitors of the iPod. A few years ago, Dell launched the XPS laptop product line, which is competing with the MacBook Pro.
Though Dell is competing with Apple in the PC market, Apple has a more loyal customer base. Over the years, Apple Inc. has built strong brand awareness in the minds of consumers in all the segments with which they are dealing.
HP
Hewlett-Packard Company HP (HPQ) is a multinational information technology company. HP was founded in 1939 by William R. Hewlett and David Packard. HP deals in computers, laptops, printers, scanners, monitors, and 3D printers. A few years ago, Hewlett-Packard split into two different companies: Hewlett-Packard Enterprise and HP Inc.
HP, Inc., and Lenovo are the top two companies with almost 22% market share, followed by Dell, Acer, and Apple. HP Inc. is providing acceptable-quality products at affordable prices. On the other hand, Apple is providing high-quality products with premium pricing. HP Inc. is a strong Apple competitor, for example, with the Surface and MacBook. Hewlett-Packard focused on the outside US, while Apple concentrated on the US market. HP is among the top Apple competitors.
Lenovo
Lenovo, or Lenovo Group Ltd., is a multinational technology company headquartered in Beijing, China, and North Carolina, United States of America. Lenovo is a global leader that provides laptops, tablets, desktop computers, servers, and software. Lenovo is a Fortune 500 company and one of the world’s top brands. The reason behind its growth is not only organic but also the acquisition of IBM personal computer business and Motorola Mobility.
Lenovo is one of Apple’s main competitors. It is giving Apple Inc. tough times with laptops and tablets. Lenovo has a cutting-edge and outclass product line like the ThinkPad, Yoga, and many convertible tablet models.
Sony
Sony Corporation is a multinational Japanese corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. Sony was founded in 1946 by Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita. Sony is known for gaming consoles, consumer electronics, films, telecommunication equipment, computers, and the financial services sector.
The Sony brand is known for its Playstation, which has a larger chunk of market share, i.e., over 50%. Sony is one of the Apple competitors based on their laptops and smartphones. The Sony Vaio and Xperia XZ Android phones can be considered alternatives to the Apple MacBook and iPhone.
Asus
AsusTeK, or Asus, is a multinational computer and phone hardware manufacturer and distributor. Asus provides the world’s leading personal computers, motherboards, monitors, mobile phones, and networking equipment.
In 2017, Asus won more than 4,500 awards for providing cutting-edge, innovative, and high-quality products. Search for incredible brand spirit. Asus has almost 17,000 employees, including 5,000 R&D professionals. Asus is a global player in the IT market. Asus is one of Apple’s competitors. It is giving Apple closer competition in terms of design and value.
Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology company that revolutionized information technology in the past few decades. Founded by Bill Gates in 1975, it is known for the Microsoft Windows product line. In the past four decades, Microsoft has achieved its objectives under the visionary leadership of Bill Gates.
MSFT product line includes Windows, Office, gaming Xbox, Surface, and mobiles. Microsoft is one of the leading competitors of Apple in many segments, i.e., operating systems, computers, and smartphones.
Google
Google is a well-known American technology company founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Google is known for its search engine, online advertising, cloud computing, Google Maps, operating systems, desktop, and mobile applications.
Google is a primary competitor to Apple in the operating system segment. Google’s strategy is focused on mass penetration, as Android holds 84.7% of the market share. On the other hand, Apple iOS has 11.7% market share. Windows and BlackBerry phones have 8 and 3.6, respectively.
In the smartphone segment, the Google Pixel is the top Apple competitor. Both the iPhone X and Google Pixel 2 are high-end smartphones competing in the market to attract customers. The iPhone X has a better screen design and wireless charging support, but the Pixel 2 has a better camera and smart assistant. These two brands are competing to increase market share and generate revenue.
Huawei
Huawei, founded in 1987, is a Chinese multinational company that provides telecommunication equipment and consumer electronic products. Huawei operates in more than 170 countries and has more than 180000 employees.
Huawei is the top competitor to the Apple iPhone. In the worldwide smartphone market, Huawei is giving a tough time to the Apple iPhone. Samsung is still the leader in the smartphone market, having more than 20% market share. Huawei has introduced “GPU Turbo” technology, which will increase the brand reputation of the Chinese tech giant. Apple is also a game changer in innovative technology and has strong brand loyalty and trust. Both these brands, Huawei and Apple, have fierce competition in the smartphone market.
OPPO Electronic Corp.
Oppo Electronics Corporation also Oppo is a Chinese consumer electronics and mobile company. Oppo was founded in 2001 and became the top smartphone brand. It globally ranked no. 8 in 2016. In 2017, Oppo ranked No. 4 worldwide in the smartphone segment. Oppo is providing cutting-edge photography experiences to almost 200 million customers globally. Oppo is one of Apple’s competitors in the smartphone segment.
Apple Smartwatch Competitors
Apple also designs, develops, and markets smartwatches that incorporate fitness and health-related capabilities. In September 2018, Apple released the Apple Watch Series 4, which is incredible and can help you in your everyday routine. There are many Apple smartwatch competitors, for example, Fitbit smartwatches, Huawei smartwatches, Samsung Gear S3 Frontier, and Garmin.
I have tried to cover all Apple competitors in the marketplace. Some competitors will be giving tough time to Apple in the smartphone segment, while others will have a strong presence in laptops, tablets (iPads), and Apple smartwatches.